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USDA-based guidance

Ground meat

Ground beef, pork, lamb, and poultry share a short refrigerator safety window on FoodSafety.gov, but cook temperatures differ (160°F vs 165°F for poultry). Open the page that matches what is in your fridge. Past a fridge window, discard it. Fridge = safety; freezer = quality.
Ground Beef fridge 1–2 days · freezer 3–4 months spoils fast — cook or freeze Hamburger meat, mince, meatloaf mix — short refrigerator window; cook to 160°F. Hamburger Patties fridge 1–2 days · freezer 3–4 months spoils fast — cook or freeze Shaped burgers — same ground-beef refrigerator clock; cook to 160°F throughout. Ground Pork fridge 1–2 days · freezer 3–4 months spoils fast — cook or freeze Pork mince — short refrigerator window; cook to 160°F. Ground Turkey fridge 1–2 days · freezer 3–4 months spoils fast — cook or freeze Ground poultry — short refrigerator window; cook to 165°F. Ground Chicken fridge 1–2 days · freezer 3–4 months spoils fast — cook or freeze Ground poultry — short refrigerator window; cook to 165°F. Ground Lamb fridge 1–2 days · freezer 3–4 months spoils fast — cook or freeze Lamb mince — short refrigerator window; cook to 160°F.

Fridge vs freezer

Grinding multiplies surface area and mixes exterior bacteria into the interior, which is why the cold chart gives ground meats a shorter fridge window than steaks or chops (FSIS ground beef; FoodSafety.gov). That fridge number is a safety limit — discard past it. Freezer months are quality at 0°F.

How to tell ground meat is spoiled

Sour or tangy smell, sticky slime, and gray-brown color throughout the package (not only the center of a tray) mean discard it. Pathogens do not always announce themselves by smell. Do not taste raw ground meat. If it sat above 40°F more than 2 hours (1 hour above 90°F), discard it (danger zone).

Storage tips

Safety notes

Color in the middle of a burger is not a doneness test. CDC’s four steps (clean, separate, cook, chill) apply especially hard to ground meat because there is no rare-safe interior the way there can be on an intact steak. Not medical advice.

Sources

Related: safe cooking temperatures · beef hub · meat & poultry · all foods